Plan to raze building at Hubbard Woods moves forward in Winnetka

An artistic rendering of the entrance to the proposed parking lot at 929-931 Green Bay Rd. and the renovated north side of the Packard building at 925 Green Bay Rd. (Handout)

A plan to raze a Hubbard Woods building to build a parking lot, in hopes of attracting an anchor tenant, passed through the plan commission Wednesday night.

Next stop: Village Council.

The proposal entails tearing down the building at 929-931 Green Bay Road — which currently houses two retail shops — in order to build a 40-spot parking lot to attract a dynamic anchor tenant for the Packard building at 925 Green Bay Road, where the GAP clothing store used to be.

Larry Hillman, the Highland Park developer whose company owns the now-vacant Packard building, has said that amount of off-street parking is necessary to lure a high-quality tenant. Members of the plan commission expressed reservations about displacing two Hubbard Woods businesses, but the request for a special permit was approved by a 7-2 vote. Plan commissioners Jan Bawden and Louise Holland were the only ones to vote against the plan.

Hillman's proposal will likely go before the Village Council — on either May 21 or June 4 — after now having approval from the zoning board, design review board and plan commission.

"We have the reputation (in Winnetka), right or wrong, that we're not friendly to commercial development," said Paul Dunn, business community development committee representative to the commission. "Here's an opportunity to change that."

But not everyone agreed that building a parking lot was the answer.

"Your designs are very inviting but it's not retail," said Holland, landmark preservation committee representative to the commission.

Holland took issue with the displacement of two Hubbard Woods mainstays — Bedside Manor, and Body and Sole — and the potential loss of sales tax revenue.

In previous interviews, Bedside Manor owner Michael Carroll said Hillman's offered to help him relocate in Hubbard Woods and that he's not opposed to the change.

But Marla Reisman, owner of Body and Sole, has been skeptical of being able to stay in the business district and decried the forced relocation of her longtime business. Neither Carroll nor Reisman were at the plan commission meeting.

Bawden, a plan commissioner, said she was worred about the precedent it might set: razing a building to build a parking lot to cater to tenant demands. And like Holland, she also pointed out the village had no clues yet as to what kind of anchor tenant Hillman had in mind.

"He's telling us a player to be named later demands 40 spaces," Bawden said. "We're going through a lot of stuff here with no guarantees."

Hillman, who was not at the plan commission meeting, has not divulged specifically what businesses might be interested in the Packard building. His attorney, Hal Francke, said at the meeting that he had no further information on that front.

The proposed parking lot will have one-way traffic flow, emptying out on Tower Court. Other components of the plan include an archway over the parking lot entrance and landscaping to soften the effect. The north side of the building at 925 Green Bay Road would be renovated to expand access from the parking lot. There will be an area for outside seating on the north side of the building, too, creating a courtyard effect.

Jim Sayegh, a Winnetka developer who owns the building across the street, 910-914 Green Bay Road, has been an staunch advocate of Hillman's plan. At the meeting, he called Hillman "an uncommon owner" and an "expert deal maker."

Speculating the Packard building would bring in a restauraunt or a high-end market, Sayegh said the loss in sales tax revenue from the displaced businesses would be more than made up by the new anchor tenant.

"I don't have a dog in this fight. …I'm just so patriotic about Hubbard Woods and so excited about what this could do," Sayegh said.